Mountain Hardwear has long been the leader in premium down, but their latest line has more give without giving much away in the process.
StretchDown is made using stretch-bonded channel construction, which translates to more warmth, wider range of movement, and a generally more comfortable fit than you’ve come to expect from ripstop.
StretchDown uses the same Q Shield DOWN Mountain Hardwear has become famous for, which is moisture resistant and won’t turn to mush when it gets wet. I’ve substituted both my StretchDown and Ghost Whisperer Jackets for raincoats recently without issue.
Since I already had the Ghost Whisperer Jacket, I went with the more substantial StretchDown Plus Hooded Jacket this time around. Like the Ghost Whisperer, the warmth-to-weight ratio is incredible, but critically, you won’t overheat instantly if you walk inside with the jacket still zipped.
If I’m wearing nothing but a t-shirt or Oxford underneath, I’ve found the low forties to be the range where I need to switch from the Ghost Whisperer to the StretchDown, and an added bonus is that the Ghost Whisperer easily layers under the StretchDown for extreme warmth.